Last Goodbye
by Legolas Nightson
Summary: Legolas must leave for Valinor. **SLASH** Please read and review!! It's quite good! :D


Disclaimer-- The characters and places in the fic all belong to JRR Tolkien and his estate. I'm just borrowing them!  
  
A/N: Wow, my first LotR fanfic I've posted here. I hope you enjoy it. Please R&R!! (Bats eyelashes)  
  
Anything in "/./" Is in Elvish  
The little boat floated serenely on the calm water, awaiting a passenger. It was not sure if the being standing close to it was going to get in it or not.  
  
Legolas sighed as he looked to the east, over the sea, toward the Undying Lands. His father and brothers had gone there long ago, but Legolas had stayed in Middle-Earth until Aragorn, King of Gondor, had passed. The Elf closed his eyes. The time had come. Aragorn was dead, Arwen was gone. There were no Elves in Mirkwood or Rivendell anymore. Lothlorien was empty, the Lady and her Lord left years ago, and with them the population of the forest home. Legolas' heart sang when he thought of Valinor, the people waiting there for him. He could see clearly the cold blue eyes of his father, warming when he looked upon his wayward son, as they always did. He could hear the voices of his older brothers, teasing him about how long he took in getting there.  
  
But, alas, he could not leave yet. There were still things keeping him here. Well, a thing.  
  
"You want to go, don't you?" Legolas turned at the gruff, but soft, voice. His eyes landed on Gimli, and the Elf was surprised. Gimli had never been able to sneak up on Legolas; he could always hear Gimli a mile off, his footfalls were so loud. But there he was, standing a little way away from Legolas, looking at him with sadness in his eyes.  
  
Sadness?  
  
"Nay, Gimli," Legolas replied, not daring to look back to the sea. "I wish only to stay with you."  
  
Gimli smile a small, sombre smile and closed the distance between the two. He hugged the lithe Elf, although his head was only level with the other's chest. Thin arms snaked into his thick auburn hair.  
  
He looked back up to the Elf's face, expecting to see the love that he knew burned there for him. Indeed, he saw that, but it was only slightly visible behind a mask of tears that threatened to fall at any minute. It broke the old Dwarf's heart. Nothing this beautiful, this perfect, should ever be upset enough to cry. It was just impossible.  
  
But wasn't it also impossible that such a perfect creature could love something as ugly as himself?  
  
Gimli sighed and pushed himself away from Legolas, who knelt on the sandy shore to be at more of a talking height for the Dwarf. Gimli held the Elf's left hand in both of his.  
  
"Go," he whispered softly.  
  
"I do not want to," was the immediate reply.  
  
"Yes you do," Gimli sighed. By the Valar, this hurt so much. "Don't think I haven't notice. I know what grief does to you confounded creatures." He looked at the long and elegant porcelain fingers that rested on his scarred and dirty hands. "I've seen it; that.glow. you always seem to have around you. It's diminishing, Legolas. I don't like to see you hurt so." Gimli looked back up at Legolas' face.  
  
The tears that stood in his eyes, blurring his vision, had now fallen and stained his cheeks with their silvery trails. Gimli was forced to look away, back at the contrasting hands. His throat had constricted and his own eyes were now filling with tears.  
  
"You have to go." His gruff voice was heavy with unshed tears.  
  
"I don't want to leave you," Legolas whispered. His own melodic voice was broken, but it still sounded to the Dwarf like the most beautiful music.  
  
"I want you to. I hate to think I am causing you so much pain." Gimli forced his eyes to stay locking onto the now puff and red rimmed ones of the Elf. "You need to go."  
  
Legolas looked over his shoulder, back out to the sea, and then back to Gimli. He knew the crotchety old Dwarf was right. He did need to go. If he stayed here, the only one of his kind, he would perish. But his parting would hurt his lover so much. But, he reasoned, not as much as his death would.  
  
Legolas leaned forward and pressed his lips to Gimli's in a long kiss. When he pulled away, the Dwarf was blinking furiously, hoping to blink away the tears.  
  
A sudden thought struck Legolas.  
  
"Come with me," he said. Gimli looked surprised.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Come with me. We'll travel to the Undying Lands as we've travelled anywhere." Legolas squeezed Gimli's hands. "We'll go together."  
  
Gimli appeared to consider it. He bit his bottom lip.  
  
"I wouldn't be welcome," he said at last.  
  
"Yes you would!" Legolas sounded as if he was pleading now. "Frodo's there. And Bilbo! And that old Hobbit's more trouble than he's worth."  
  
Gimli smiled in spite of himself. "Yes but," he replied patiently, "They weren't Dwarves."  
  
Legolas looked puzzled. "Why would that make any difference?" he asked innocently.  
  
"Our races haven't always got along as well as we do." "That doesn't matter! If different races can't live together in harmony in Valinor, all hope is lost for Middle-Earth." Gimli could see the desperation in Legolas' eyes. "Please?"  
  
"They might not let me in," he argued.  
  
"If they don't, I will return here with you." Legolas fingered Gimli's beard in a gesture he knew the Dwarf found almost impossible to say "no" to. "Please?" he asked again.  
  
Gimli sighed and smiled. "Okay, you fey thing." He watched as Legolas' face lost the sadness it was sported and leapt back onto his feet. The golden glow around the Elf was returning, and Gimli's blood danced to see that. "What do I need to bring?"  
  
"Nothing!" the Elf almost sang. "Let's just go, before the grumpy Dwarf can change his mind." He grinned at Gimli just as he was about to protest. Legolas lifted him up and literally threw him into the awaiting boat. He jumped in after his stout lover and pushed away from the shore. Away from Middle-Earth.  
  
"Gimli?" Legolas said after a while.  
  
"Yes, Legolas?"  
  
"/Amin melalle/"  
  
Gimli concentrated. "/Amin melalle vithel, Legolas./"  
~~~~Finis~~~~  
A/N-Well, what do you think? Please don't flame meeeeeeee!  
  
Amin melalle - I love you  
  
Amin melalle vithel - I love you too [also] 


End file.
